


Like Paper Airplanes We Will Conquer the Sky

by badlifechoices



Category: Captain America (Movies), Supergirl (TV 2015), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Crossover, F/M, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, a teeny tiny bit of violence but nothing graphic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-07
Updated: 2016-03-07
Packaged: 2018-05-25 07:23:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,899
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6185752
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/badlifechoices/pseuds/badlifechoices
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>She’d make for a beautiful painting, he thought, the artist inside him wanting to commit the sight of her hair in the sun and the way the wind played with her cape, to memory before the moment was lost. Once he realised, he was staring, he quickly cleared his throat. “Thank you. That was close.”</p><p>The sound of another explosion interrupted him before he could add anything else, and her eyes focused on something behind him before she flashed him a grin. “Don’t worry about it. Now if you will excuse me, I have a city to save.”</p>
            </blockquote>





	Like Paper Airplanes We Will Conquer the Sky

**Author's Note:**

> This is a commission for Carrie, I hope you like it! I had a lot more fun writing this than I expected tbh, I've never really considered this ship but I think I like it!

“Hawkeye, do you have eyes on the situation? Bucky I-” He didn’t get to finish the sentence, cut off halfway when a deep rumbling sound filled the smoke stained air around him. It took him only a split second to realise the threat the sudden noise entailed, before his instincts kicked in and he started running. The roof of the building seemed a lot larger than before, the muscles in his legs straining, as he headed for the edge. His gaze flickered to the sides, confirming what he’d already known: There was no other way off the skyscraper, no neighbouring building he could jump onto, no convenient power supply line.

The rumbling grew louder as the ground under his feet began to shake, almost throwing him off balance. His breath coming out in harsh pants, he slid the shield back onto his back, only subconsciously listening to the familiar hum of the magnets that kept it in place. The building reared up, the muffled noise of explosions reached his ears and then the all too familiar complaining of steel and concrete, crumbling under the forty story weight. He had no time left to think. He reached the edge, not wasting a second looking back, before he leapt off the collapsing skyscraper.

Fear surged through his veins, as he fell, cold air rushing past him. “Falcon!” His voice cracked, abandoning him as the realisation hit him that even with his supersoldier physique a fall from this height could be fatal. Time didn’t slow down, like one would expect it, instead his mind jumped to overdrive. Squeezing his eyes shut, he tried to ward off the million thoughts invading his brain, the knowledge that Sam had been five blocks away when he last reported in and there was no way he’d reach him in time. The cracking of breaking bones echoed in his head, his subconscious painting gruesome pictures of his broken body on the pavement.

He clenched his teeth and braced himself for the surge of pain, instinctively pulling his legs closer to his body to shield himself…

Something crashed into him, knocking the air out of his lungs.

His train of thoughts reeled off the tracks, surprise washing over him. It took him a second to realise that he had, in fact, not hit the ground at all. Instead there was a pair of strong arms wrapped around him, squeezing him tightly and pressing him against something – someone who was nowhere as cold and hard as the pavement he’d expected. Dizziness overcame him, as he blinked and found himself still in the air, completely thrown off balance but quickly regaining his senses. _Falcon._ He thought, before he turned his head and his eyes focused on the person holding him. The sight revealed that it was most certainly not Sam who had caught him in the very last moment. With the sun high in the cloudless sky above him, he was blinded for a second, barely able to make out the features of the other person. His vision was filled with smudges of red, blue and gold.

Steve blinked, taken aback when he saw that his saviour was not only effortlessly holding him up with their arms still wrapped tightly around his chest but that they were in fact not flying but _floating_ in a way he’d only ever seen Vision do it. A delicate face, framed by waves of golden hair greeted him and a smile curling around pink lips. “Hey.”

“Hi.” He croaked in return, not quite sure what else to reply since he was still trying to catch up to what exactly was going on.

In return he got another, bright smile. Only half a minute later, he found himself back on solid ground. It took him a second to find his balance and he let out a shaky breath. The arms fell away from around him and an irrational feeling of disappointment tore at his chest. He chased it away, turning around to save his saviour fully. The young woman eyed him intensely, hands resting on her hips as she stood as self-confidently as any hero would. She’d make for a beautiful painting, he thought, the artist inside him wanting to commit the sight of her hair in the sun and the way the wind played with her cape, to memory before the moment was lost. Once he realised, he was staring, he quickly cleared his throat. “Thank you. That was close.”

The sound of another explosion interrupted him before he could add anything else, and her eyes focused on something behind him before she flashed him a grin. “Don’t worry about it. Now if you will excuse me, I have a city to save.”

And with that she was gone, before he had any time to reply. He whirled around, eyes tracking the flash of red and blue across the sky. He lingered for a second longer, before reaching for his ear to make sure the earpiece was still in place. “Hawkeye, report! Falcon, I need a lift.” The woman was right, they weren’t done yet. Not when the city was still in danger. Forcing himself to focus, he hurried down the street, dodging debris and reaching for his shield once more.

Somehow he felt like the appearance of that mysterious hero would help turn the situation in their favour.

 

* * *

 

“You mean you met the actual Captain America?” Winn’s face was the funniest mixture of surprise and admiration, eyes glinting with excitement like that of a five year old on Christmas. Not that Kara had ever seen an actual five year old human on Christmas and they didn’t celebrate Christmas on Krypton but she couldn’t come up with any other comparison. “I need to know everything! Do you think you could introduce me?” She raised an eyebrow at his enthusiasm, opening her mouth to reply that she doubted she’d get the opportunity to introduce him. Also there wasn’t exactly much to tell about her encounter with the famous Avenger. Sure, she’d kind of saved him from plummeting to his death or at least an impressive set of broken bones and she’d caught glimpses of him in the battle that ensued. But apart from a ‘I’ll take care of them’ and ‘yes we have prison that is suited for people like them’ as they were standing over the body of the unconscious alien who had wreaked havoc in her city, they hadn’t exchanged any more words. He’d nodded his approval, offering his and his team’s help with the prisoners but the DEO had chosen this exact moment to show up. With Alex busy prodding her for any potential injuries, the DEO agents crowding the place and Henshaw bellowing orders, she’d lost sight of him. By the time she’d assured her sister that she was indeed fine, he was already gone and with him the rest of his team.

 She’d barely explained the matter to her still entirely too excited best friend, when a familiar clicking of heels attracted her attention. Turning around, her lips turned into the best smile she could manage, as she watched her boss step out of her private lift and stalk towards her office. Her ‘Good morning, Miss Grant!’ was cut short, when the older woman only waved a hand in a dismissive gesture.

“Yeah, yeah. Keira, my office. Now.” When she hesitated for a second, the other turned her head, sending him a look that had her scrambling to follow. With one last apologetic glance at Winn, who was nothing if not used to this kind of scenario by now, she pulled the glass door shut behind her.

Even after she’d been working for the news company for quite a while now, the way Cat ignored her completely while she set up her desk, still made her nervous. She tried her best to tune out the mumbles of conversations she could hear from the offices around them and stepped towards the large desk. “If it’s about your coffee, Miss Grant, I’ll get it immediately, I didn’t have the time to pick it up before I came in…” But the other woman only silenced her with another gesture, resting her hands on the table, as she looked up. The expression on her face was one of pure professionalism but she had a glint in her eyes that reminded Kara of an actual cat staring down her prey.

“The Avengers are in town.”

Kara frowned, trying her best to sound honest, when she nervously adjusted her glasses. “They are?”

Cat only rolled her eyes in response, turning around once more to rummage around in her handbag. “You work for a news company, Keira.” And then, as though a thought had suddenly crossed her mind, she looked up, eyeing her assistant with suspicion in her features. “It was all over the news, half of downtown is in ruins, how could you have possibly missed that?”

The assistant in question fidgeted, realising that feigning complete ignorance had been the wrong choice. Well, now she had to roll with it. “I, uh, don’t really watch TV at home.”

Her boss huffed out a breath, shaking her head for a second before turning away once more. Kara breathed in relief, when the woman didn’t question her explanation and instead went right back to what she’d meant to say in the first place. “It doesn’t matter. What matters is that this story is going to be big. If there’s one thing the people in this city love almost as much as they love their own resident hero, it’s other heroes. Now obviously we weren’t first on scene last night but I fully intend to be the first one to get an exclusive interview.”

The way her entire posture spoke of determination left no doubt that she’d do anything to get the interview. Kara wondered why she too felt a strange excitement settle in her stomach. Probably simply because Cat’s enthusiasm was entirely contagious. Yeah, that had to be it. “That’s great, Miss Grant. But won’t it be hard to convince them to do an interview? I’m sure everyone else will be all over those _heroes_ already.”

The look on Cat’s face was enough to shut her up before she could utter any more words of doubt. The older woman sat down, brows knitted together in a frown as she turned towards the computer. “Don’t worry your pretty head about things like that. Now where’s my coffee? I told you I need it when I get in, what am I even paying you for?”

“Coffee, right. I’ll have it in a second.” Kara muttered, hurrying back towards the glass door.

She was already out of the door, when her boss called after her. “Bring me a bagel. Low fat cream, no cheese.” Kara only nodded in response, not needing to be reminded of the order that had probably been burnt into her brain at this point. When Winn flashed her a sympathetic smile from over his computer, she returned it, wondering what her friend would say about the prospect of Miss Grant interviewing Captain America, his all-time favourite superhero. Second only to Supergirl of course. Kara would not give up her position as the city and her friends’ number one favourite for a guy from the forties, no matter how hot he was. And wait, where did that thought even come from?

Hurrying to push the inappropriate idea aside, she tried her best to not let her mind wander back to how he had felt pressed against her, when she’d stopped his fall, the very distinct outlines of his muscles she’d felt through the fabric of his uniform or the way he’d looked at her full of surprise and amazement. Okay, this was getting out of hand, he was attractive, sure, but that was no reason to get ahead of herself and develop an actual crush on a guy she would in all possibility never see again.

 

Fate had a strange way of favouring her sometimes, she thought when she stepped into the coffee shop and immediately stopped dead in her tracks at the sound of a familiar voice. Her eyes scanned the small crowd, settling on two men standing in front of the counter. Even with the hoodie replacing the uniform, Kara thought she recognised the broad shoulders. Feeling a sudden wave of nervousness wash over her, she hesitated, torn between the urge to disappear out of sight and pretend like nothing was wrong. After all he surely wouldn’t recognise her anyway, not without the outfit and with the glasses that had fooled everyone so far. She settled for slowly approaching the counter, unable to keep her lips from twitching into a smile as she overheard the conversation going on.

“I always get an Avengers discount! Look I have my ID card and all!”

“Clint, there’s no such thing as an Avengers discount.”

“Aww, Cap, shut up, not all of us are rich or get government subventions for breathing.”

Kara reached the counter just when the Captain let out an exasperated but slightly amused sounding sigh. The sight of the barista was what had her snort, the look of utter insecurity and helplessness the poor girl had on her face as she tried to patiently explain that they really had no such thing as a hero discount and ‘yes she could check with the manager but she doubted it would help’. She quickly clasped a hand over her mouth but it was too late. A pair of blue eyes was suddenly resting on her, filled with surprise at first, then curiosity and something akin to recognition. Kara inwardly cursed herself for not picking the ‘flee’ option earlier, yet when the man gave her a smile that was nothing but blinding, she couldn’t help but return it.

Strangely enough while her rational mind hoped that he would just ignore her and leave, some part of her hoped that he wouldn’t.

With the other Avenger, Hawkeye, she assumed, still busy arguing with the poor barista, the Captain turned around to fully face her, the casual way he was leaning against the counter betrayed by the tension in his shoulders and the way his eyes darted from her face to the door every now and then. He was on edge, she thought, and she was able to relate to the feeling all too well. With her heightened instincts she always knew what was going on around her, especially since she became Supergirl, she was always just expecting the next disaster to happen or the next crazy alien to jump her. Her gaze traced the lines of his face that she hadn’t really been able to see the other night with the mask. He was even more handsome in daylight. She immediately discarded the thought.

He frowned. “You’re-“

Panic bubbling up in her chest, she forced herself to smile, as she hurried to interrupt him. “Kara. I work CatCo. We haven’t met before- I mean, I don’t think we’ve met but it’s certainly nice to meet you!”

The other hesitated for a moment, before something like understanding settled on his face and the smile on his face widened, as he held out a hand, squeezing hers, when she instinctively reached out to take it. “Steve Rogers. Pleasure to meet you, Kara.”

She couldn’t quite figure out what he was thinking, of course not, no matter how much she could hear, another person’s thoughts weren’t among it. A shame, really. She would’ve loved to know what was going on behind his eyes. Kara squeezed his hand in return, feeling heat invade her cheeks, when he didn’t let go until what seemed like an eternity later. His thumb brushed over the back of her hand and she hastily drew it back, trying her best to ignore the way the contact made her skin tingle.

Steve opened his mouth to say something else, when a triumphant ‘Hah!’ interrupted them. Turning back towards the counter, Kara noticed the defeated look on the barista’s face and the gleeful smile on that of the second Avenger. “I knew it. Avengers discount!”

“Clint…” Steve began, shooting Kara a look that clearly said ‘look what I have to put up with’ and made her grin.

“Nuh-uh, Cap. The manager confirmed it. Now use it or not but I’m getting my discount.”

The Captain only rolled his eyes at his teammate’s antics and went to order himself. Kara found herself watching him, fascinated by the way he appeared casual but at the same time still carried the air of a leader, a military man. She barely registered when the barista asked her for her order, snapping back to reality, when the woman behind the counter clicked her tongue in annoyance. She hurried to order then, trying to keep her eyes on her hands instead of staring at Steve. Only when he left and flashed her another smile, she pulled herself together and gave an awkward wave in return. Picking up the coffee, she glanced at her watch and cursed. She hadn’t realised how much time had passed and surely, Miss Grant would be beyond pissed if she didn’t get back immediately.

She was halfway back to the office she noticed that she’d completely forgotten about the bagel.

 

* * *

 

When she’d thought that their encounter in the coffee shop had surely been the last time they’d meet, she was mistaken.

Somehow Cat had indeed figured out a way to convince the Avengers to agree to a live interview only a day later. And so for the second time in three days, Kara found herself trying not to keep glancing at Steve, where he lounged on the comfortable couch in Miss Grant’s office. Earlier that day she’d thought her heart would leap out of her chest, when Captain America him-very-self had entered the office through the private lift and upon seeing her, given her a bright smile. “Kara!” He’d exclaimed, making a beeline for her desk and she’d practically been able to feel Winn’s ‘I thought you said there wasn’t much to tell’ look.

“Hi, uh, good to see you, Mister Rogers.”

The man had only shaken his head. “Oh please, call me Steve.”

Not quite sure what to reply, she’d just nodded, murmuring an ‘of course’ before the distinct sound of someone whistling had made them both jump. An honest to god blush had crept up the supersoldier’s cheeks and Kara had felt relieved knowing that she wasn’t the only one fighting with her awkwardness.

She hadn’t gotten the chance to talk to Steve again, when Cat had waved the four Avengers – the rest of the team was busy somewhere else, according to the article – into her office and Steve had flashed her a disappointed, albeit friendly smile before mock-saluting and following Hawkeye into the glass office. Throughout the next hours she had been busy pointedly not looking at any of the gathered heroes whilst at the same time ignoring Winn’s raised eyebrow and his expression that promised a thorough questioning from his part later.

For some reason she felt as though she couldn’t quite focus on anything she did that day, neither the texts she was supposed to be proofreading, nor the layouts piling up on her desk and waiting for Cat’s final okay. Subconsciously her gaze always kept wandering to the glass front, only to scurry back to her computer when she caught a glimpse of Steve’s face or the way his hands would dance through the air when he explained something.

Here she’d thought she had a huge crush on James but with him her heart never stuttered just from looking at him. Sure, she was comfortable with him but she didn’t crave his attention as much as she wished she could talk with Steve again, right now. And wow, she really shouldn’t be getting into this because it would never work out for a bunch of reasons. She abandoned the idea of actually writing a pro-con list because she was pretty sure she didn’t even have a chance with him in the first place. As if Captain freaking America would go for someone like her, right?

Kara tried her best to swallow her disappointment at not getting the chance to talk to him before he left. By the time she returned from one of the errands Cat had sent her on, he was already gone and when she snuck a glance out of the window, she couldn’t spot him anywhere.

The upside of the whole situation was that Cat was positively glowing with satisfaction. She didn’t snap at her once and sent her home earlier after she’d gone for another coffee run. “Shush, I need to concentrate.” Was all the woman said before she locked herself in her office to pour over the report. Kara knew from experience that there was no talking to her until it was finished and that with the utter concentration the journalist brought up, it would probably be a masterpiece. Just like her Supergirl articles always were. She tried not to think too hard about just how she’d come to be mentioned in the same paper as the Avengers as she texted Alex and hurried home.

 

* * *

 

The cracking sound filled her ears and had her freeze in her movement. Hand still stretched out she could do nothing but stare, body going numb with shock, at the scene in front of her.

Her hands were still hovering in the air, like she was reaching for someone. Her eyes were fixed on the man lying only a few feet away from her on the pavement of the street. Unmoving. His limbs sticking out in odd angles, neck twisted. For a second everything around her seemed to slow down, the realisation seeping into her brain like the cold water of the rain drenched her shirt, slowly, inevitably.

Her mind reeled, replaying the scenario. She’d been taking down a group of bank robbers, bullets bouncing off her skin without leaving as much as a scratch. Too late she’d heard the movement behind her, whirling around to fight off the man who was trying to catch her by surprise. She’d pushed, not paying any attention to the strength she used. She was too used to fighting aliens, people with superhuman strength. She’d pushed and he’d gone flying backwards, arms flailing he’d twisted his head as he hit the ground and then…

The sound of his spine breaking, the breath rattling past his lips. A last desperate struggle. And then nothing.

Nothing.

Kara felt herself stumbling backwards, her blood rushing in her ears and her eyes wide when it finally hit her.

She’d killed someone.

The thought burnt itself into her brain, had her unable to move away from the scene. As if from far away, she heard someone call for her. She slowly dragged her eyes away from the body, lifted her head the tiniest bit, to see a familiar, masked face fade into her field of vision. Hands clasped her shoulders tightly, worried blue eyes scanning her form for any trace of injury. In any other situation, she would’ve felt a wave of affection rush through her at the obvious display of his worry. Now she could do nothing but stare, numbness spreading in her body and her mind too occupied with what she’d just done to really focus on him.

“Steve…” She forced her lips to move, spoke out the only word left on her tongue. He didn’t ask if she was hurt, didn’t question her reaction, just pulled her in. Suddenly she was wrapped in a strong embrace, arms circling around her, keeping her safe and shielding her from anything the world could throw at her.

It didn’t make things alright, it didn’t erase what she’d done but it quenched the feeling of loneliness before it could set root in her heart. They say that heroes are always lonely, having to face their demons, their responsibilities on their own. Kara had never believed in it, not when she had Alex and Winn and James and even Cat to back her up. But right now, right now the only one who could truly understand her was this man who had seen more death and misery than most others. The one who had seen what she was capable of and still rushed to her side, holding her as though she was precious and worthy of his affection.

“It’s over.” He mumbled into her ear. “It’s over.” His hand found her hair, gently running through it as though he was trying to comb out all of her troubles. She didn’t think the gesture could affect her this much but it was as though the way he was simply _there_ made something break inside of her. Tears welled up in her eyes. Her lips parted to give voice to a choked sob. Fingers digging into his shoulders she buried her face in his shoulder, holding onto him like a drowning man would to a life raft. His hand didn’t stop moving through her hair, he didn’t stop holding her close, even when the scene was crowded with journalists and cops. He grasped her shoulder more tightly and led her away from the invasive questions, from the screams of outrage and the blaring sirens.

Kara didn’t pay any attention to where he was leading her until she found herself seated on a bench in a secluded corner of the park. It was a miracle how they managed to escape from the reporters without even being able to fly but she didn’t have the mind to really think about it. Steve was probably just used to it. She also didn’t have the mind to wonder when during the last two months of sporadically fighting together and running into each other at the coffee shop that they both frequented, they had hit the point where neither of them was apparently opposed to expressing affection in public. Not that anything like this had ever happened before, she’d still believed her crush to be a strictly one-sided thing, no matter what Alex said about pining and ‘so obvious it hurts’.

Right now she wished, she could just enjoy the moment, lean into him and feel the butterflies in her stomach dance but there was nothing and too much at the same time.

“I killed him.” She whispered, the words sounding wrong and too loud in her ears. “I killed him.” Again and again, she repeated those words, as though she was waiting for him to object, to assure her that she didn’t, that it was all just a mistake. But it wasn’t. She had heard the bank robber’s heart stop, had heard his bones crack and his breathing falter. Steve didn’t say anything, didn’t offer her any words of false hope or meaningless expressions like ‘it’s alright’.

Instead, he pulled her against his side, arm still protectively around her shoulders. “During the war I went to a lot of different places. I mostly just followed orders, did what my superiors wanted me to do, killed who my superiors wanted me to kill…” He hesitated for a little moment, before he continued. “There was this little village in the South of France. A beautiful place. When they heard we were coming, the Nazis rounded all the villagers up in the town square, demanding to know who fed us information about their troops. They killed half of the men and women before we got there.” Kara glanced up to find that he wasn’t looking at her anymore. He was staring at something far away, face twisted in a look of sad remembrance. “I took them down before another innocent could die. Not all of them were die hard ideologists, most of them were just following orders too. There was this boy, fourteen, maybe fifteen years old. He was so scared, he begged me to let him live.”

“You had to do it.” Kara supplied gently.

Steve shook his head. “I didn’t do it. I let him live. Turned my back on him only to have him blow himself up with a grenade, taking half of the square with him.” He pressed his lips into a thin line before letting out a defeated sigh. “I’m sorry, that probably didn’t help you at all.”

She hurried to reach for his hand, squeezing it gently. “No, no. I- Thank you for telling me about this.” She rubbed a hand over her face, chasing away the tears and drops of rainwater.

He gave her a look of scepticism and she forced her lips into a little smile, surprised to find that it was easier to smile at him than she’d expected.

 

* * *

 

Steve didn’t exactly remember how he’d let Sam convince him that it would be a good idea to appear at the fundraiser hosted by another powerful politician he didn’t trust the least bit. Maybe it had been the argument that it would be good for their image or maybe it was because the man let slip that Cat Grant of CatCo would be there and that she’d surely bring her charming assistant along. The thought alone made Steve’s heart jump in a way that was entirely not what he was used to. So he had put on the expensive suit he’d been given and spend an awfully long time in front of the mirror worrying about his hair until Bucky had more or less forcibly dragged him out the door.

He wasn’t one to enjoy social gatherings like this, missing the charm and light-hearted atmosphere the dancehalls of the forties had provided. He quickly grew tired of shaking hands, exchanging words of meaningless small talk and answering the same questions what felt like a dozen times. He’d almost given up all hope for the evening, when he spotted Miss Grant and, at her side as always, the young blonde assistant. His heart seemed to skip a beat at the sight of her in her red dress. It suited her, hugged her in just the right ways. In the warm light of the chandeliers her hair seemed to be glowing, blue eyes sparkling. Lost in thought he only noticed that he was staring when she turned and met his eyes, a slight blush dusting her cheeks as she flashed him a smile.

His feet moved before he could order them to, crossing the room to approach her. She seemed as out of place as he felt, clearly not the biggest fan of such events either and Steve couldn’t help his lips from spreading into a wide smile, as he stopped in front of her. To him it was as though she was lighting up the entire room, putting all those women in their expensive dresses to shame just with the way she tilted her head and looked up at him. Gathering his courage, he held out a hand, bowing his head. “Would you grant me this dance? I’m afraid I’m not the best dancer but for you, I’ll try.”

Surprise flitted over her features and then something else that filled his chest with warmth, as she grinned and reached for his hand. “Of course.” She glanced over her shoulder to make sure no one was close enough to overhear them and lowered her voice before she continued: “I do think I’m better at fighting aliens than dancing but as long as that doesn’t bother you.”

‘I never forget a face.’ He’d told her a few weeks ago. He’d debated whether or not to tell her that he knew without doubt about her identity as Supergirl but when he’d seen the look of panic on her face morph into one of relief, he’d been sure. Her secret would be safe with him, they both knew that. And if she wanted him to keep treating her like she wasn’t the woman with the cape, he’d do just that.

Before he could ponder over the matter any further, they’d joined the few other couples on the dance floor. His hand found her waist and hers rested on his shoulder. Even if they were both a bit awkward, neither of them entirely confident in their dancing prowess, it worked. They seemed to fit together like they were meant for this. With the slow music filling his ears, he dared to pull her a bit closer until their chests were pressed together and he could feel her hot breath ghosting over his lips. The way her eyes searched his made his heart flutter with hope. Hope that they could be something, that things could stay like this.

He admired her, not only for her beauty but for her wit, for her sharp mind and her courage. For the way she never seemed the tiniest bit intimidated by him, something that Steve rarely encountered. Most people saw only the uniform, the shield or the name alone. It was the downside of being a living legend, he supposed and most times it made him feel as though he would be just as easily replaced. With her it was different, with her he felt like he was no one but himself. A boy from Brooklyn who had stumbled into a world of superheroes and villains and tried his best to keep his humanity alive when the world around him did anything to tear it from him.

She pulled him away from the dance floor once the song had ended. He glanced over his shoulder and saw Bucky and Clint standing next to the buffet table, obviously discussing something. As though feeling his gaze, Clint looked up and flashed him a thumbs-up.

The cool air that embraced him as they stepped out onto the balcony, was refreshing and he took a deep breath, filling his lungs. It did nothing to chase away the nervousness eating at his mind when he turned and found Kara looking at him. For a long moment neither of them said a word, their hands still joined, fingers entwined. They were still close enough that he could feel the warmth radiating off her. It would be so easy to just lean in kiss her.

And so he did.

With nothing else on his mind than the way the dim light played with her hair, he brushed his free hand against her cheek and bowed his head to bring their lips together in a kiss. Her lips were as soft as he’d imagined, moving against his as though she had been wanting to do this as badly as he had. She took a tiny step forward and once again they were pressed flush together. Eyes fluttering shut, he tilted his head for better access and she melted against him as he deepened the kiss.

Steve couldn’t tell whether it lasted a minute or an hour. Every time he pulled back, he was drawn in again until they were both completely out of breath. Kara hummed, pecking the corner of his lips before taking a step backwards. Still not letting go of his hand, she turned towards the door to the balcony. “We should go back in, I bet they’re all waiting anxiously for your return.”

He returned her smile and squeezed her hand. As long as she was here with him, he would be able to survive even listening to self-obsessed politicians and making meaningless small talk.


End file.
